Northern Star: Goldproduzent weist milliardenschweres Übernahmeangebot zurück

Northern Star Resources, the largest gold producer in Australia, has rejected a billion-dollar takeover offer from South African rival Gold Fields, announced on Monday. The cash and share offer valued Northern Star at 38.7 billion Australian dollars (approximately 23.9 billion euros). Facing pressure from activist investor Elliott Investment Management, Northern Star criticized the company's weak performance and demanded a sale or divestment of assets, as well as a reshuffle of the board of directors.

Elliott also requested the appointment of a new CEO. In July, Northern Star appointed Suresh Vadnagra, a former manager from Glencore and Newcrest Mining, to lead the company in the coming month. The takeover wave in the gold industry has been fueled by the multi-year rise in gold prices. Gold Fields is one of the most active buyers.

However, Northern Star had to lower its production forecast multiple times last year. Problems at the Kalgoorlie processing plant in Western Australia are slowing down the output from mines that Elliott describes as "world-class." "Gold Fields wanted to acquire one of the world's leading gold portfolios at a price well below the board's fundamental valuation – and at a highly opportune time," said Chairman Michael Chaney.

Based on the closing price of Gold Fields share on September 11, the offer equated to 27 Australian dollars per Northern Star share. The 22 percent premium was calculated by Northern Star. The Northern Star share rose in Sydney trading by up to eleven percent, reaching around 24.46 Australian dollars, close to the price implied by the offer.

Northern Star informed the potential buyer that the company would not continue discussions with the offer. Elliott and Gold Fields initially did not respond to Bloomberg's requests outside regular business hours. Northern Star intends to focus on increasing its market capitalization given the strength of its assets, said Lisa Liu, Managing Director at Gold Mountains Asset Management, an investment arm of Zijin Mining Group. The company is probably unlikely to be acquired at a low valuation, Liu added.